


NovaClan Origins:  The Hunt for Legends

by NovaClanWarriors



Series: NovaClan [1]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Gen, Novaclan, Roveclan, StarClan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-15
Updated: 2016-03-15
Packaged: 2018-05-26 22:21:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 13,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6258055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NovaClanWarriors/pseuds/NovaClanWarriors
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of NovaClan takes place a handful of years after the events of the original Warriors series. The four clans of the forest have disappeared, and a new gang of cats, RoveClan, has moved into the region. With the humans steadily expanding the nearby city and these vicious newcomers swarming through the area, the world has become a much more hostile place for every cat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Lucky's Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The very beginning with a cat that doesn't live up to his name.

A cool breeze crept through the night air in the city, rustling the bushes that stood at the corners and sending stray leaves and rubbish tumbling along the sidewalks. Lucky sunk deeper into his makeshift shelter and squeezed his eyes shut against the chill, trying to fall asleep over the sounds of his own growling stomach. It had been two days now since the young tom had eaten, and even so, the last morsels he had managed to find and scarf down could hardly be called a meal. The small black cat tossed and turned before finally sitting up and licking at the sliver of white fur on his chest, one of many that decorated his pelt. It was no use, he just couldn’t sleep tonight. He was so hungry that he was beginning to feel a strange surge of energy, as if his body were giving him one final push to get up and find food. He stood on shaky paws and stuck his head out past the plastic bag that covered the open side of the cardboard box that he had been lucky enough to find unclaimed tonight. 

Finding shelter was rough in the city. If you didn’t either live with the humans or with the clan, you generally didn’t have a place to stay. All the good shelters and hiding places were already claimed and occupied by the gang of clan cats that dominated the streets. They called themselves RoveClan, and were a band of vicious and cruel cats who raided any place they could get their paws into. Every hedge, every trash can, every old abandoned human shed was more than likely marked with their scent already. Day in and day out, dumpsters crawled with RoveClan cats, tearing open large black bags in search of food scraps. Crawlspaces under the human buildings echoed with yowls of the clan cats scuffling with each other in their day to day affairs. It was no place for a gentle cat like Lucky, who had once been lived with humans.

Lucky had been born into a human home to a yellow-eyed black tom and an amber-eyed tortoiseshell she-cat. He was the third kit of his litter, which came as a surprise to everyone as they had only been expecting two kits. Despite this, he was born a strong, healthy kit and was loved by his family no less. He spent the first four moons of his kithood passing lazy days with his brother and sister, playing games and pretending to go on adventures within the human house. His life was peaceful and simple, until one day a fire had consumed the house, taking the lives of his humans as well as that of his mother, father and siblings in the blaze. Lucky had been outside in the garden earlier that day, and had slipped through a gap in the fence for the first time to see what was on the other side. It wasn’t until later that he smelled the odor of smoke in the air, coming from the direction of his home. As he rushed back to the garden and squeezed back in through the fence, the house was surrounded by humans in bright yellow pelts, spitting jets of water at the smoldering house through odd limp snakes that lay along the ground. The scene puzzled Lucky before he realized that the house had been on fire, and there was no sign of his family anywhere around. 

After the smoke had stopped, the yellow-clad humans had gathered around and surveyed the pile of debris where his home had once stood. Lucky padded up to where the door to the garden used to be, and meowed desperately at the wreckage, over and over, hoping that a familiar voice would answer, but no one ever did. One of the humans noticed Lucky and approached him, bending over to pick him up. Normally he would have held still and let the human pick him up, but at the moment, he had just wanted to be with his family. He panicked and ran from the human, and kept running until he could no longer hear their chatter or smell any trace of the smoke lingering in the air. He found himself in a completely foreign place. He hadn’t gone terribly far, but he was no longer in the safe boundaries of his home, and he knew he could never return. Lucky was going to have to learn how to survive on his own.

Lucky’s life so far had been anything but “lucky”. It was sort of a cruel irony that the name was bestowed to him. He had spent the next four moons wandering the streets. There he had his first encounters with cats outside of his family. The cats that he found belonged to RoveClan, and did not hesitate to rob him of everything he had. Every time he found shelter, it didn’t last for more than a few days before they scented him and drove him out, stealing any food he had managed to find, and salvaging any materials he had used to protect himself from the cold. Lucky wasn’t sure what it was that kept him going each morning. Perhaps he was naive, but he’d always felt like he had a purpose. Like he was meant to be useful or important, somewhere, somehow, or at least to someone. Lucky pulled his head back into his box and tugged the shredded black and white papers around him to keep him warm as he closed his eyes and tried to sleep once more. He didn’t know what else life had in store for him, but whatever happened, he knew he would be ready.


	2. Fairydust’s Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The very beginning with a cat in the dirt.

Fairydust lay in the dirt with her head upon the slab of stone marking where her human's body now rested, eyes on the lillies left by the woman with the gentle voice and rough hands. Her once perfectly groomed fur was now dirty and unkempt. She didn’t know where her beloved neck ribbon was but she imagined it had fallen off sometime after her escape from her humans family. Or maybe it had been before. She couldn’t remember clearly.

She remembered her wonderful days with her human, the way he would read from his books and show her everything he was researching. He had told her stories of human belief from all across the world, which was something they all lived on. It had something to do with the ball her human spun by his desk and she sat on to look out the window. He would point to places on the ball when he told her the stories and how much they meant to the people who lived there. 

Fairydust had always wanted a story for herself, but he never told her a story for cats to believe in. Even more than that though, she loved when he taught her about plants. Her human used plants all the time for everything and most of her best memories took place in the garden. Her human would put plants into bowls and drink them when he felt ill and give her some when she felt the same. She learned all about what was and wasn’t good for cats to eat and what would happen when they did.

She knew that lilies would make her sick and put her in the beyond if she ate them. She mewled and flicked her tail as she remembered what happened on her last day with her human. How at the end as he climbed the stairs she had darted past him. How he had yelled and fallen. The sound he made just before he finally lay at the bottom. How she had lay on his chest and cried for him to please wake up as she licked his face. How it took days for another human to come inside and find him, that they couldn’t help him, and finally put him in a hole in the ground the way he had told her humans did to each other when they were in the beyond. 

She didn’t bother to remember her days with her humans family. There wasn’t much to them. And now she was back here in the graveyard with her human and the lilies she was tempted to taste. But in the end she sat up and decided she should probably find something to believe in first, that was the appropriate sequence according to her human. You believed and when you died you went to the beyond that belief gave you. 

With one last lick to her human’s stone and a meow goodbye, Fairydust set off into the city to find something for cats to believe in.


	3. Chapter One

It was hardly dawn when Lucky squirmed awake, his fur being assaulted by cold droplets of water that had soaked through the roof of his cardboard box. He rolled to his feet and peered outside. It was raining, and from the looks of it, it had only recently started. His box would have to be left behind, as it wouldn’t last very long in a downpour. Lucky turned back inside and gnawed the last morsel of meat off of the chicken bone he had been saving. It would not be wise to parade the scent of food all through the town as he looked for a new place to stay. Once he was done, he took a moment to straighten down his slick black fur, hoping he could make it last a little longer as a barrier against the weather outside. Readying himself, he took a deep breath and darted out into the rain.

Rain made the town look and feel very different. All the scents that were usually separate and distinct suddenly all melted together, as if all the objects that the humans kept in their houses had been spread out onto the street. Many of the scents were strong and unpleasant, making the water that puddled on the ground sour and undrinkable, but some smells were interesting, and even appealing. There was no time to stop and explore, however. The glint of unfriendly eyes filled every crevice as cats took refuge wherever they could. No place was safe during a rainstorm. Lucky only hoped that he’d gotten out early enough to find a spot to hide before there were none left.

Lucky headed toward the bakery. The trash there was usually full of things such as hard breads and eggshells, and never any meat. It was one of the least likely spots to be occupied by another cat. As Lucky rounded the corner behind the building, he skidded to a halt on the wet ground when he saw three large dogs tearing through the trash, tugging at the bloated sacks and shaking them apart with their powerful jaws. The closest dog spotted Lucky, dropped the piece of bread he was chewing on, and bounded toward him. Lucky spun around and shredded his claws against the pavement, fleeing the scene as quickly as he could, the three dogs barking in pursuit. Moving quickly, he saw an opening ahead of him and sprang toward it, flattening himself as he slipped under a gate that was too low for the dogs to follow, leaving them barking furiously in a standstill behind him. 

Dogs were just another hazard of life on the streets. Humans would always defend the cats who lived with them in their homes, but they hardly ever showed any concern for the strays that had no human family. No cat could blame them though, seeing how the clan cats behaved. Even the noisiest sloppiest human wouldn’t want anything to do with a RoveClan cat. All the clan cats did was terrorize everyone and destroy everything in sight, and because of them, the humans’ hostility toward strays in general had increased lately. More and more innocent cats were abused and forced to run from place to place as Lucky had to do now.

Lucky looked around as he caught his breath. He was in a place he had only seen from a distance, but had never visited before. It was the humans’ wheel kennel graveyard, the place where they left their giant rolling travel kennels when they got dirty and they didn’t want them anymore. Lucky didn’t understand it. They usually just left them there and got new ones. He didn’t know why they couldn’t just wash them and use them again. It was no use racking his brain about it though. Humans are such a wasteful species after all. 

As he looked up and down the rows of angular metal kennels haphazardly piled upon one another, a shiver ran down Lucky’s spine. The humans had stopped coming here after a falling pile of kennels crushed two of them a few moons ago. Lucky had been nearby and heard the loud crashing sound, and later seen another group of humans carrying away the two mangled bodies and loading them into a larger kennel with flashing lights. One of the same type of flashing kennels had shown up at his old house to collect his humans’ burned bodies after the fire. Even the RoveClan cats didn’t hang around this place very much. The rickety piles of metal were very unstable, and climbing in the wrong place could easily end in disaster. The entire yard was unsafe, but Lucky had to wait until the dogs at the gate went away before he could leave, and decided to look for any low-lying cover from the rain.

Lucky spotted a kennel that was over in a corner all by itself. It laid firmly on the ground, and didn’t seem like it was in danger of anything falling onto it. There was a wide hole in the side a little ways up. He crouched, and sprang hard at the opening, getting half of his body inside and kicking with his hind legs to make it the rest of the way. Sharp jagged edges scraped at his underbelly as he struggled in, drawing a little bit of blood, but not deep enough to worry about. He fell onto the soft cloth of the human-sized seat inside of the kennel, settled down and flipped over to lick at the fresh wound.

While he was on his back, Lucky thought he heard a noise from behind the seat. He paused and flicked his ears forward, listening for any sound other than the constant tapping of raindrops against the metal roof of the kennel. Behind the edge of the seat, less than half a tail length away were two eyes, staring widely at him, paired with an alert set of ears. Alarmed, Lucky sprang backward, bumping into the round surface behind him causing the kennel to let out a loud howl. Both cats jumped again at the sudden noise and landed on their feet in the seats opposite one another, their fur standing on end from the sudden adrenaline rush. 

The second cat was a small white and grey she-cat with grey eyes. They stared at each other for a long time before Fairydust booped his nose. Lucky flinched back and quickly covered his nose with one paw.

“H-Hi..?” he meowed, confused, still unsure whether or not to relax his shoulders.

“Hello. I’m Fairydust,” she replied, “who are you?”

“I’m..” he paused and corrected himself, “..my name is Lucky.” He knew what the word meant in human speak, and refused to humor it. He allowed himself to relax a bit. The she-cat certainly didn’t seem like a member of RoveClan.

She snorted. “So your name is Lucky but you aren’t lucky? I suppose my name is Fairydust then as I’m certainly not magical sprinkles. Anyway, you’re welcome to stay in the car with me if you’d like, Lucky.” 

“Car?” he tilted his head quizzically and looked at her. “Oh! Is, is this your home?” he squeaked, jumping to his feet and circling uneasily. “I’m sorry! I was just looking for a place to hide from the rain!”

She reached over and put her paw on his head, “it’s not my home I was just here first. And the humans call this thing a car. I took quite a few rides in the one my human owned.”

Lucky’s eyes widened and he settled down and sat. “Oh, I see! Well, you don’t seem like a clan cat… How long have you been on your own?” he asked.

“Clan?” It was her turn to be confused, “I don’t think I’m one. And I’m not sure how long, but it hasn’t been too many days.” 

“Ah, well you’re lucky if you haven’t run into them so far.” he went on. “They’re a band of ruthless cats that steal food and shelter from strays and raid human homes too. They call themselves RoveClan, I think.” He couldn’t help looking around nervously a bit at the mention of their name. 

“Ah, I see. Your name is Lucky but I’m the lucky one,” she teased him. “No, I haven’t seen any cat as brutish as that. I’ve been sticking to the area around the graveyard and this is the farthest in I’ve gone really. I found some berries safe for eating and I go back there when I’m hungry. I can show you if you’d like.” 

“Sure! That would be great!” he meowed gratefully. It made sense that she hadn’t run into any hostile cats there. RoveClan cats were only interested in places with lots of leftover meat and other human foods. “When the storm lets up, that is.” 

Lucky looked up at the roof of the car as the dull rumble of thunder sounded in the distance, along with another faint sound that slowly raised alarm in both cats.

“Oh no, I forgot about them!” Lucky yowled, springing to his feet and looking back at the gate he had crawled under to get here. The three dogs that had been pursuing him had dug a hole under the gate through the muddy earth and were squeezing themselves through. “We might need to run…”

Fairydust was alarmed and confused, “run where? From who?” 

“Dogs!” he hissed and pointed with his tail at the three massive figures, now sprinting toward their hiding spot. “They chased me here, come on!” He leapt out of the hole on the other side of the car and looked back for Fairydust to follow.

She looked at the charging forms for only a second before jumping after Lucky. She had met only one dog in her entire life and the meeting ended with her human rushing her to a pet clinic. She didn’t have that sort of option now so sticking with Lucky was definitely the best option available. 

Lucky dashed through the yard with Fairydust close behind, frantically sweeping the area with his eyes for any place they could hide that was too small for the dogs to follow. He recalled the dangers of this place as well, not wanting to be crushed under an avalanche of metal like those humans had been, but if they didn’t act fast, it wouldn’t matter either way. 

He could hear the dogs getting closer with every heartbeat. “There!” he called out, darting toward a twisted metal fence wedged against a heap of metal. His pulse quickened as he squeezed himself behind it.

Fairydust pushed herself through after Lucky seconds before the dogs reached her. The dogs bounced off the fence but stuck their paws through, swiping at the two cats. One of them had grasped the wire of the fence in its jaws and was beginning to pull the fence away from them. Lucky looked behind them. There was no place to run.

“Can you fight?” he asked Fairydust, unsheathing his claws warily.

“I-I'm not sure. I’ve never tried before,” she also unsheathed her claws and stared at them before looking at the dogs. 

“W-We might not have a choice.” he stammered, taking a deep breath and crouching nervously but ready to bolt at the nearest dog, just as the fence collapsed. Suddenly, a deep and powerful growl shook the ground and rattled everything around them. The dogs hesitated and turned their heads to the source of the sound. The two cats couldn’t see what it was, but they instinctively shrank back even further into their corner. The dogs turned back toward the cats and stepped forward slowly, but the growl roared again, even louder than before, as if the sky had opened up and spat thunder right beside them in the yard. The dogs sprang back as if something had made a move toward them, and ran away whimpering with their tails between their legs.

“W-What was that…?!” Lucky asked, looking at Fairydust as if she’d have an answer.

“A dragon or something else likely to eat us?” 

Lucky didn’t know what a dragon was, and stared at her as if she were crazy. Not having anywhere else to run, he got down onto his belly and slowly crept forward until he could peer around the corner at the source of the noise. The deep rumbling sound came from a massive car, as tall as five or six of the other ones. It sat on massive round paws many cat-lengths high, and had blindingly bright eyes that lit up the raindrops falling along the yard. As frightening as it was, it didn’t seem like it was going to attack him. Lucky gestured with his tail that it was safe to come look.

“Is that a dragon….?” he whispered to Fairydust, gazing at the massive machine, still growling ominously.

“I’m not sure. None of the stories had a metal dragon but they can change shapes sometimes,” she said seriously, “if it is we should try and trick it to turn itself into a mouse. Then we can eat it.” 

Lucky crept another half step forward, getting his fur muddy as he kept low to the ground. He narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better look at the machine. Just then, lightning flashed in the distance, illuminating the sky for a brief moment. Just for an instant, inside an opening halfway up the beast, the flash revealed the unmistakable silhouette of a cat!


	4. Chapter Two

Lucky and Fairydust remained crouched in the mud, locked in a staredown with the giant metal beast. Fairydust was the first to speak, relaxing her shoulders a bit. Lucky just crouched down even flatter, not so sure that either of them should let their guard down.

“Well, it’s definitely not a dragon. I guess it’s another type of car but I’ve never seen one so big.” Fairydust inched closer. “Who’s that inside?”

Suddenly the massive machine fell silent, and its eyes went dark. The cat shape inside shuffled around a bit before carefully hopping out of the front hole onto the nose of the beast. “I know you’re there. You two aren’t very good at hiding,” the mysterious figure called out in an elderly sounding voice. “It’s alright, I won’t bite.”

Fairydust darted forward and put her paws on part of the machine. “Hello sir! Thank you for the help, I don’t think we’d have made it otherwise.”

Lucky flinched at her eagerness to run forward toward the machine, even though it was silent at the moment. He flattened his ears and carefully padded up beside her.

“Don’t mention it!” the old voice meowed. A closer look revealed a very old tom, about as old as a cat could be. He had earthy brown fur that clung to his sides revealing the shape of his bones underneath. At a certain angle, the deep shadows that fell across him made him look like a living corpse, but the warm expression in his partially clouded eyes made him seem carefree and friendly. “I’ve been dying for an excuse to torment those dogs for a while now. They’re always running about and making such a racket.”

“They are rather loud and obnoxious,” she agreed. “My name is Fairydust and this is my friend Lucky. Who are you? How did you learn to operate a car?”

The old cat looked thoughtfully at the sky with an amused expression as the rain slowed to a stop. After a moment or two, he turned back down to the two younger cats. “They call me Skullbones,” he replied. “At least now they do. The reasons are obvious I’m sure.” He leaned forward and stretched, flexing his thin muscles, revealing that he really was nearly just skin and bones. “As for how I learned to operate these things, I’ve been here a long, long time, and I’ve picked up a thing or two over the years.” He leapt carefully off the gigantic car as he spoke, bending his knees a bit more than normal to cushion his landing. He started to rise to a standing position, but instead he settled in place and sat in front of the two cats. Lucky suspected that the jump had hurt his legs more than the old cat cared to admit. 

“So what brings you two to a place like this?” Skullbones continued, sniffing the air in their direction. “You two don’t smell like the clan.”

“I was sheltering in a car over there.” Fairydust pointed towards the way they had come. “Lucky jumped in with me just before the dogs caught up. And no, neither of us are clan cats. I haven’t met any but they sound horrible.”

Lucky nodded as Fairydust explained. “Yeah, every good hiding place in town is taken already by the clan cats. I was looking for a place to hide from the rain before those dogs started chasing me,” he added. 

Skullbones just shook his head and looked toward the sky with a glazed expression. “And this was the only place you could find to take shelter? This place is terribly dangerous! No cat should be forced to take shelter here!” The old tom’s voice trailed off as he began to push himself to his feet. “No wonder every cat thinks that StarClan has abandoned us. Am I the only one who believes anymore...?” he grumbled under his breath, starting to turn away back toward the piles of metal.

Fairydust’s ears perked and she lurched forward. “StarClan? What is StarClan? Is that what cats believe in?”

Skullbones flinched at her words and his fur prickled a bit as he stopped to turn and face the two cats once more. “You’ve never heard of StarClan…?” His eyes had a new depth to them as he stared intently into Fairydust’s eyes. He diverted his gaze to Lucky, but he shook his head, and the old cat let out an exasperated sigh. “StarClan is… well,” his expression saddened as he went on, “it was our way of life.”

Lucky was intrigued, he leaned forward to ask a question but Fairydust spoke first. “But what is it? What does it mean? How do cats… live by StarClan? Please, I have to know! It’s what I’ve been searching for.”

He looked up at the sky again, frowning at the thick layer of clouds that loomed above. “StarClan is a group of cats that’s made up of all of our ancestors. When a cat leaves this world, their spirit is carried on to join StarClan.” He gestured up toward the sky with a frail paw. “The great band of stars that stretches across the sky at night is called Silverpelt, and each star in Silverpelt is a cat of StarClan. They watch over our lives, even during our darkest hours. They also gave us the warrior code to live by, so that no cat should lose his path.”

Lucky and Fairydust both gazed at the old cat, processing all that he had said. Their heads were spinning with questions, but neither of them knew quite where to begin

“There was a time when even RoveClan followed the warrior code, but those days are long gone. Ever since Reaver drove out the four great clans and desecrated the Moonstone…” He let out the last few words with a low hiss, clearly showing his contempt.

Fairydust took a deep breath. “How does one learn the warrior code?”

Skullbones’ expression hardened and he stared intently at both cats, as if he were testing their resolve. Neither cat dared to blink as the elderly cat held their gaze for a whole minute without making a sound. Finally, he spoke.

“You remind me of them... Maybe there’s still hope yet.” He stretched again and shook the bits of mud off of his fur. “It may be easier if I just, showed you...” He moved silently between both cats, gesturing with his tail for them to follow. “Come. I’ll take you to the Moonstone and you can speak to StarClan for yourselves.”


	5. Chapter Three

Lucky and Fairydust placed their paws cautiously as Skullbones led the two cats up a mountain of jagged and rusted scraps of metal littered with razor sharp shards of glass. The cold surfaces felt unnatural and made small creaking noises under the pressure of their paws. All around them, harsh fumes filled the air.

“Where are you leading us?” Fairydust meowed impatiently, spreading her paws to keep her balance as a plate of metal shifted beneath her weight.

“Just keep up, and make sure you match each of my steps exactly!” Skullbones called out casually, not bothering to look back see how well the two cats were following. 

It was a treacherous climb up the pile of abandoned cars, but the old tom padded along with a practiced gait, as if he’d been this way countless times. The two younger cats took their time to ensure that each step was safe. At times it felt as if the smooth surfaces would slip out from beneath them, and their soft pads had tiny hairline cuts and scratches all over from the bits of glass.

“Almost there, almost there!” Skullbones chanted ahead of them, slipping into a large hole in the side of one of the cars near the top of the pile. Fairydust glanced back at Lucky, her face stern but her widened eyes betraying her excitement. He gave her a quick nod to go ahead as he closed last few steps. A faint squeal of excitement slipped from the she-cat as she turned and hopped down into the car with Lucky close behind.

Inside the car, the stench of fumes was even stronger. Lucky strained to focus his eyes in the dark. If he lost sight of Fairydust, he’d never be able to find her by scent in here. He caught a glimpse of her tail as she followed Skullbones to the other side of the car and climbed down through a gaping hole torn in the floor. Lucky was nervous about going deeper into this treacherous pile of machinery, but before he had time to hesitate, Skullbones’ voice echoed from the hole.

“Don’t worry! This is the easy part!” he meowed, already quite a few tail-lengths down the hole. Fairydust slipped the rest of the way in, and Lucky followed. 

On the inside, the hole was much like the landscape outside, the surfaces made up of slabs of metal, but here they seemed deliberately placed and much sturdier. There were obvious footholds along the way that formed a gentle slope safely down through the wreckage. Perhaps Skullbones had formed the path here himself. Although there was hardly enough light to see by and navigating by scent was useless, Lucky and Fairydust could still navigate by hearing, listening for the pawsteps of the cat ahead of them. Every now and then, their whiskers would brush against a stray surface, helping to guide them along. As they proceeded deeper into the tunnel, a faint light source became visible ahead. All three cats quickened their pace as they approached the source of the glow.

The tunnel ended ahead at the side of a small car, partially buried under more scraps of metal so that only the rounded upper half was visible. Inside the car, a light shone from the underside of the roof. A black string led away from the car up to a glossy rectangular panel that was wedged in the debris a tail-length above. There seemed to be a small amount of daylight shining onto the panel from a small gap in the machinery around them.

“We’ve come at a good time. The light usually only glows like this after dark,” Skullbones commented, crouching into the opening in the side of the small car. Lucky remembered that the sky outside was still darkened by stormclouds. But what was this light? Was it the Moonstone?

Fairydust and Lucky followed Skullbones and watched intently as the old cat pushed the lid off of a small hard box in the center of the car with his nose. Immediately, small glittering pinpoints of light filled the area, reflected from the light shining overhead by the small stone that lay in the box.

“This, is the Moonstone. Or at least what’s left of it.” Skullbones meowed quietly, lowering his head slightly as he gazed at the shimmering object with awe as if he were seeing it for the first time himself as well.

Fairydust walked reverently forward and whispered, “it’s actually glowing. Like from a story.” 

“This stone is one of six pieces. Together, they made up what was once the Moonstone,” Skullbones went on with a hint of wonder in his voice. “The cats of the four old clans would travel to this sacred rock whenever they needed to speak with StarClan. The Moonstone was not the property of any one clan, it belonged to all cats. It granted wisdom and knowledge to medicine cats, and even had the power to give nine lives to clan leaders.”

“But what happened to the clans? And where are the other pieces of the Moonstone?” Fairydust asked the old cat.

“No one knows exactly what happened to them. One day, a misguided cat named Reaver tried to claim the Moonstone for himself. The leaders of all four clans came to stop him, but the stone was shattered during the battle. Ever since that day, the powers of the moon stone have not worked in quite the same way.” Skullbones let out a heavy sigh. “It is believed that each leader took a piece back to their clan that night, and Reaver has one as well. 

The she-cat’s eyes widened and she stared at Skullbones in awe. “Does that mean, you were one of the clan leaders?” The old cat chuckled and shook his head.

“No, no, nothing like that,” he turned back to face the crystal as he spoke. “This piece was lost when the original Moonstone shattered. It was many seasons before I came along and found it. I have guarded it with my life ever since.”

Fairydust nodded slowly, and Lucky stared at the glowing stone as he padded up beside her. “W-What do we do now?” he asked, turning his head slightly toward Skullbones but not taking his eyes off of the sparkling stone.

“Sit, both of you,” he replied, “and listen to what StarClan has to tell you.”

Fairydust immediately sat down, pupils wide with her ears perked forward at full attention. Lucky settled next to her obediently, but he wasn’t so sure how he was supposed to listen to a rock. Skullbones chuckled and padded in front of the two cats, nudging their heads gently with his nose.

“It isn’t as simple as hunting a mouse. You’ll need more than your eyes and your ears,” he meowed softly, passing back out of their way and taking up a position behind them. “Close your eyes, and tell me what images come to your minds.”

Fairydust closed her eyes and concentrated very hard. Nothing happened except her heartbeat finally slowing down. Lucky fidgeted beside her, his eyes closed as well. He seemed to be having trouble understanding this whole ordeal too. Skullbones stood once more and circled around them, letting his tail brush lightly over their ears as he passed.

“Good, you’re beginning to relax,” he meowed in a whisper, continuing to pace slowly around the two cats. “I can hear, your hearts’ stories.” The old cat sat down once more, this time directly in front of the Moonstone, staring into it as if it were speaking to him directly. His whiskers twitched as his expression saddened a bit. 

Lucky scrunched his face slightly, his eyes still closed. “What do you mean, our hearts’ stories?” he asked, his voice bordering on annoyance. He wasn’t convinced yet that it was possible, but just in case it was, he didn’t like the idea of another cat being able to look into his heart. The thoughts that filled his mind were private and rather unpleasant much of the time.

“I can see, the kits that you once were,” Skullbones continued, still gazing into the stone, “the cats you are today, and the warriors you will become.” As he spoke those last words, his eyes shone with a spark that hadn’t been there moments ago.

Fairydust opened her eyes. “Aren’t warriors fighters? I don’t think I can be one,” she mewled sadly, “I can’t see anything at all but I’m trying.” 

“There is more to being a warrior than just fighting,” meowed the old tom, turning to rest one frail paw on Fairydust’s head. “The destiny of a warrior is decided by StarClan. Cats worthy of their blessing often have many paths in life. Some become leaders and protectors, others become healers and dedicate their lives to caring for others, while some seek out new ways to better this world we all share, but they are all warriors in their own right.” 

Skullbones removed his paw and sat up straight in front of the two cats. “StarClan tells me that the two of you have the hearts of warriors, and that you are ready to take on your warrior names.” His eyes gleamed with a hint of amusement. “It’s a bit unconventional, seeing as neither of you has been apprenticed the old-fashioned way, but who am I to question StarClan’s judgement.”

Fairydust squirmed a little, immediately back to excited. She nudged Lucky a little and chirped, “maybe now you can say ‘I am’ instead of ‘my name is’!”

“Maybe you won’t be magical sprinkles anymore!” he teased back, waiting to see where all this was going. 

“Magical Sprinkles! That’d be the perfect warrior name for me!” she exclaimed. Lucky smiled and let out a small sigh, and Skullbones cleared his throat to get the two cats’ attention.

“Well, the usual ceremonial speech doesn’t quite apply in this situation, so, I suppose I’ll have to improvise a bit.” He thoughtfully turned his head upward for a moment, and then turned his gaze toward Fairydust, looking her directly in the eyes. 

“Fairydust!” he called sternly to the young she-cat, who meowed questioningly back. “Do you wish to learn and uphold the warrior code, and live by the ways of StarClan?” he asked, watching as her eyes grew wider.

At this point her heart was ready to burst. This was shaping up to be everything she had been hoping for.“Yes, more than anything! I promise to be the best warrior I can be!” 

Skullbones held her gaze a moment longer before turning to Lucky. “And Lucky!” The young tom jumped at the old cat’s voice. “Do you wish to do the same for yourself?”

Lucky had to admit that he wasn’t one hundred percent sure what all this was really about, but he somehow felt that this was the path he had been waiting for. He drew a breath to answer, pausing to make sure that his voice would be clear. There was no room to sound uncertain. “Yes.. Yes, I do!” he meowed in response, glancing quickly at Fairydust. He had made a new friend today, and already they were going on quite an adventure. Skullbones stared into his eyes for an extra long time, but finally nodded and spoke again.

“Then by the powers of StarClan, I shall bestow upon you your warrior names!” His voice echoed as he turned back to the she-cat. “Fairydust, from this day forth, you shall be known as Bonewhisper.” He leaned down and placed his chin on her head as she purred happily. 

“That’s a cool name!” Lucky purred to Bonewhisper before he was interrupted by Skullbones’ voice, directed at him this time.

“And Lucky! From this day forth, you shall be known as Shadowlight.” Skullbones turned and rested his chin on his head as the young cat looked down and shuffled his paws. His whole body felt warm with energy, and he couldn’t help purring instinctively.

Bonewhisper leapt to her feet and leaned against Shadowlight. “What now, Skullbones?” 

The elderly cat smiled proudly at the two new warriors. “What’s next is up to you! I sense great curiosity and purpose from the two of you. Surely there are goals that you’d like to achieve and mysteries that you’d love to solve. Go out and pursue any of these things, and StarClan will guide you.”

Shadowlight tried to think of what it is he’d always wanted, but it was proving more difficult than he’d expected. He was a simple cat who appreciated simple things. He glanced at Bonewhisper again, who was quivering with excitement. He envied the way she got so excited over things, but at the same time it felt nice to see her happy. Shadowlight nodded with understanding. For now, he would stick with Bonewhisper and help her achieve her dreams. Perhaps his destiny lay somewhere along the same path.


	6. Chapter Four

Evening was approaching fast and the clouds were finally beginning to disperse. Golden rays of sunlight cast shimmering patches on the damp ground as Shadowlight and Bonewhisper made their way across town toward the forest. After Skullbones had given the two cats their warrior names, he told them more about the four old clans that had once lived in the area, and how a cat named Reaver had come to power and led a new clan of cats to drive them out. The same clan that later became known as RoveClan and began terrorizing the town. The two new warriors realized that if the old clans are still out there somewhere, it may be possible to bring them back to reclaim their territory. If RoveClan were driven out, then cats such as themselves would no longer have to live in constant fear. 

Bonewhisper licked her lips repeatedly, attempting to wash her muzzle of the dark purple stain from the blackberries they had stopped to eat earlier. Shadowlight looked on in amusement at the bright color that stood out on her white and grey fur, thankful that his jet-black pelt wouldn’t show any stains. After the two cats had said goodbye to Skullbones and left the junkyard, they both realized that they were famished. Bonewhisper remembered the blackberry bushes near the graveyard and led them there. The berries were delicious, but not nearly as filling as meat. Shadowlight did manage to hunt down a small robin that was hiding in one of the bushes, and the two cats shared his catch. 

After they had eaten, Bonewhisper took a moment to gather a few herbs for their journey. She had learned about many different types of plants, some that had medicinal properties, and thought it would be wise to bring a few along. After she had plucked a variety that was to her liking, she wrapped them all in a large oak leaf and carried it by the stem.

“Hey Fairydus- I mean, Bonewhisper!” Shadowlight meowed clumsily. “Sorry! I keep forgetting!”

“I know, me too! It’s gonna take a while for me to get used to it,” she called back enthusiastically. “Hehe, ‘Shadowlight’, that’s kind of a silly name isn’t it? Having two opposites together?”

“I guess,” he meowed back, watching his paws as they padded quickly across a road. “I don’t know, I kinda like it though.” He looked down at the slivers of white fur on his legs. There were a few more along his pelt, like tiny glimpses of light within the vast shadow of his mostly black fur. The name Shadowlight did suit him well in a way. “I certainly like it better than ‘Lucky’,” he added.

Bonewhisper looked at her new friend thoughtfully for a moment, and then nodded. “You’re right, it does suit you, doesn’t it.” She gave his shoulder a friendly nudge, “Now maybe you can tell me what exactly I’m supposed to whisper to bones.”

“Maybe it means you can speak to the dead, like, a bone whisperer!” he replied. “If so, that could come in handy.”

“It could! But it could also be scary, I’m not sure how we could take down zombie cats.” 

“Do you think maybe we have past lives or something like that?” he meowed, staring off into the distance as they padded onward.

“Hmm. I’m not sure. I think it would be amazing if we did though. Especially if we could tap into it. We’d know a lot more that way, learn from mistakes we didn’t make this time around.” 

“Maybe if we’re lucky, we’ll find out!” he nodded. Suddenly, the sound of yowling cats interrupted their conversation. Shadowlight pricked his ears toward the source of the sound. “Do you hear that? It sounds like, someone’s in trouble.”

She perked her ears too, “I do. We should do something, which way is it coming from?” 

Shadowlight lowered himself to the ground and focused his ears to hone in on the source of the sound. “Over there!” he yowled, dashing forward. Bonewhisper meowed in agreement and ran after him.

Around the corner lay an adult she-cat, her well-groomed fur a brilliant red, matching the color of the setting sun in the distance. Her stomach round and swollen. She must have been nearly ready to have her kits. In front of her stood three rather intimidating she-cats. They closed in on her as if she were prey and began jeering at the isolated cat.

The largest of the three, a scruffy brownish-gray cat, was sitting and meowing encouragement to the thinnest as she pawed at the pregnant cat.

“If you really think about it Bloodbliss would be the better mothering choice. Least she has a nest, food, isn’t street trash... Really, you’d be doing your kits a favor, scum.”

“Aw thanks, Spiderbite. You really know how to warm a cat's heart,” Bloodbliss meowed with false sincerity as she swiped at the red cat’s tail pinning it to the ground with a bony sandy-orange paw.

The last cat seemed increasingly uncomfortable as the future mother hissed and tried to free her tail without touching the others paw. The third cat spoke up. “Girls, really we’re going to get in trouble if we stay here much longer and you know whose route we’re near!”

“Shut it, Tanglepelt,” the other two said together. The long-haired calico shrank back obediently at her clanmates’ harsh words.

Bonewhisper took the time to act while they were distracted. She quickly set down her bundle of herbs and lunged forward, pushing Bloodbliss’s paw away and maneuvering so she stood between her and the red cat. “Why don’t you shut it and listen to the smart one. Get away from this cat, she doesn’t need this kind of stress right now!” 

Bloodbliss’s mouth hung open as the turned to look at Spiderbite who was walking to stand beside her. One of Spiderbites hind legs dragged behind her the whole way but she didn’t seem to notice as she sat down, leaving it poking out at an angle. “Well lookit that. I guess street scum really does clump together. Move aside trash before I wreck that adorable little face of yours.” 

The red she-cat turned her head graciously to the two young warriors. “You two had better stay out of this. They’re dangerous cats. Don’t worry, I can handle this myself.” She snarled quietly and slowly unsheathed her claws.

Bonewhisper blinked and looked at Shadowlight before turning back to the red she-cat. “But you’re pregnant,” she hissed worriedly. Shadowlight stepped between her and the three other cats, unsheathing his claws as well, just in case it came to a fight.

Spiderbite gasped, “She’s pregnant! Well, it’s a good thing you were around to inform us all litter breath. She wouldn’t have known till they popped out!” 

Bloodbliss and Spiderbite laughed and edged closer to the two defending cats. 

“Leave her alone!” Shadowlight snarled, standing his ground. He couldn’t stand to see a cat being ganged up on like this.

“Agh. It’s so pathetic it’s almost adorable,” Spiderbite sniffed and stood as she nudged Bloodbliss. “Let’s just leave the trash for now. We can come back when the kits are ready for taking.” 

“Sounds good to me,” Bloodbliss said as they turned and walked away. Tanglepelt lingered for a moment, casting the red cat a sympathetic glance before turning to join her clanmates. Once they were gone, she pushed herself to her paws and shook the dust from her fur.

“Don’t you two know better than to mess with RoveClan?” she scolded the two young cats. When she saw the shocked and frightened looks in their eyes, the she-cat’s expression softened. “Hey, I appreciate you two sticking up for me. Just, be careful of what you get yourselves into, okay?”

Bonewhisper and Shadowlight nodded attentively, and Shadowlight finally let out the breath he was holding, sheathing his claws and relaxing a bit. “We’re just glad you’re okay,” he meowed.

The she-cat stared at him, puzzled as to why he would care at all for a cat he’d never met. “Well, um.. Thank you,” she replied awkwardly.

“Anytime,” Bonewhisper chirped, “let me know if you need any help with the pregnancy.” 

The red she-cat rose to her full height and flicked her tail. “Thank you for your concern, but I’ll be fine,” she meowed irritably. Shadowlight didn’t want to risk upsetting her too. He stepped forward and bowed his head.

“Well, I’m Shadowlight and this is Bonewhisper. We just became warriors.”

“Warriors? You’re not with the clan though are you?” the she-cat asked, confused.

“No! We’re just, by ourselves.” His explanation didn’t seem to satisfy her, and Shadowlight realized it wouldn’t have made sense to him either.

“Well, my name is Rubyshine,” said the red cat. “I’ve been traveling with those cats for a few weeks but,...” she lowered her gaze to her paws, “..they aren’t the kind of cats I thought they were. I have to get away from here, for the sake of my kits.”

Bonewhisper looked down and shuffled her paws. “Well, we’re traveling to the forest. You could join us if you’d like,” she meowed invitingly.

“The forest? Why there? There’s no food or shelter in the forest.” She craned her neck back to look questioningly at the strange pair of cats, as if trying to see the answers in their heads. 

Bonewhisper realized she wasn’t quite sure herself what they were going to find, but she hadn’t told Rubyshine about their quest. As she opened her mouth to speak, she was interrupted by a sharp hiss from Rubyshine.

“They’re coming!” The large red she-cat crouched into a defensive stance, her ears focused far in the distance. Clearly she could hear or scent something that the other cats hadn’t detected. “You two had better get going,” she whispered, carefully turning to leave before sprinting away. 

Bonewhisper looked confused as she watched her disappear around a corner. The sun had now set, and the artificial lights were beginning to glow along the sides of the road. Shadowlight’s fur bristled uneasily. “What was all that about?” he meowed.

“I-I don’t know,” Bonewhisper sighed. “Something must have scared her?” She swiveled around to meet Shadowlight’s eyes and all of a sudden her ears perked up as well.

“What? What is it?” Shadowlight turned around and listened intently. The sound was faint at first, but as he sniffed the air, he picked up a scent that confirmed it. RoveClan cats were near.

The quiet shuffle of pawsteps grew closer and closer, darting unseen from one corner to the next. It was difficult to tell how many cats there were by the sounds alone. Three, maybe four? Shadowlight slowly took a few steps back and bumped into Bonewhisper. He flinched and turned to see her facing the other direction, staring frightenedly toward a shape that was slowly encroaching on their position. 

Shadowlight sensed danger, but curiosity at the identity of the shape made him stay and narrow his eyes, trying to get a better look at it. “Is that a cat..?” he whispered. “It smells like one, and sort of moves like one, but it’s far too huge and,.. and it’s not really shaped like a cat.”

As the shape moved closer, it came under the light of one of the road lamps, and its features became clear. The shape that approached them was a gigantic round tom, at least four times the size of a normal cat and nearly spherical in body shape. He breathed heavily as he lumbered toward them with his teeth bared, rolls of fat rippling across his body with each pawstep.

“L-Let’s go,” Shadowlight meowed in alarm, flicking his tail at Bonewhisper’s nose. Surely we can outrun him, he thought, but as the two cats turned, they found themselves surrounded by four unfriendly looking cats. They must have been the RoveClan cats Rubyshine had heard. 

“What do we do?!” Bonewhisper yelped, huddling beside Shadowlight. Before he could answer, a deep resonating voice rumbled behind them.


	7. Chapter Five

“What are these two kittypets doing on my turf?” grumbled the massive tom, his labored breathing adding to the irritation in his voice as his sides expanded and contracted. Shadowlight scrunched his nose and flattened his ears as the large cat’s breath blew over his face. 

“U-Um,” he stammered. Shadowlight recognized the term “kittypet”. It was used as an insult by the clan cats when they referred to an outsider that had lived with humans. He planted his paws firmly on the hard ground, trying to hide his trembling. “We were just on our way to the forest.. We didn’t mean-”

Shadowlight was interrupted by the large cat’s loud snorting as he sniffed the air. “Three of my queens were here just now,” he grunted, sniffing and snorting more deliberately, “and another she-cat, carrying one, no, two kits.” He lowered his gaze back down to the two cats and glared at them. “You’ve been talking to my cats. What are you two up to?”

Shadowlight was stunned. How could this cat possibly know how many kits Rubyshine was carrying, just by her remaining scent?!

“He just told you we were on our way to the forest. Those three were picking on the other and we heard the racket. Go ask them about it and leave us alone,” Bonewhisper hissed wanting desperately to get out of this situation quickly. 

The large round cat frowned and lifted a paw that was nearly as large as Bonewhisper’s entire head and aimed it to strike her, but paused as a scrawny cat scurried between them carrying a fried chicken leg and dropped it in front of the massive tom.

“Here you go, master Munchmouth,” the cat meowed humbly, ducking out quickly and running off into the shadows. The large cat looked delightfully down at the food and began tearing chunks of flesh from the bone with his mouth and gulping them down.

“Munchmouth?” whispered Shadowlight, “Pretty obvious how he got that name.”

One of the RoveClan cats heard his remark. “Silence!” he hissed. “You’re talking about RoveClan’s second deputy here, show some respect!”

“Second?” Shadowlight questioned. He didn’t know much about RoveClan’s leadership structure, and wanted to see how much he could find out, but Munchmouth interrupted with a grunt as he finished his snack. 

 

“Quiet!” he yowled, looking a bit annoyed, possibly not too happy about being called second deputy by the other RoveClan cat, who dipped his head and fell back a few pawsteps.

All the commotion had begun to draw attention, as numerous flecks of light gave away the watching eyes of stray cats. Shadowlight met the yellow-eyed gaze of a strong looking tortoiseshell tom who sat and watched from a nearby fencepost, hoping to gain any support he could get, but the stray quickly looked away, pretending not to notice. Munchmouth kicked the chicken bone aside and pushed himself forward a step. “You two look nice and tender,” he meowed, taking another step closer. “You’ll save my hunters a lot of work!”

Shadowlight and Bonewhisper flinched. What did he mean? Did Munchmouth really intend to eat them?!? They crouched, ready to flee, when the massive cat flicked his tail, signaling the RoveClan hunters to attack. 

Suddenly, in a flash of fur, the RoveClan cats were on top of them. Shadowlight snarled and bit at his attackers, managing to grab one of them by the ear, but it was already torn and the cat slipped out of his grip and batted him onto his side. He rolled to his feet before the second cat could pounce on him, and struck the ragged tom in the nose with extended claws. The cat hissed, revealing a mouth full of broken and rotting teeth before he clawed back at Shadowlight, catching him by the shoulders and pinning him to the ground. The first cat returned and pinned down his hind legs so that he couldn’t move.

Bonewhisper screamed when the RoveClan cats fell on her. A few backed up from the sound but the rest charged forward and began swiping. She dodged and ducked, far more focused on getting away and to Shadowlight than fighting back. She felt blood dripping on her side from where someone had scratched her but she had seen where Shadowlight was pinned and was trying to get to him. She didn’t make it far before she was buried under two other cats. 

The two cats squirmed helplessly under the weight of their attackers as Munchmouth lumbered toward them. The gigantic tom laughed at the sight of their struggle, sending a shower of crumbs flying from his muzzle as his mouth moved. 

“We got ‘em, don’t worry!” meowed the tom pressing into Shadowlight’s shoulders. The greenish brown she-cat that had pinned Bonewhisper hissed angrily into her face. The poor warrior struggled and scrunched her face at the hunter’s rancid breath.

“Stop breathing on me, bitch!” she managed to gag out. “Get off!” 

“Ooh, I like this one, Acidbreath.” meowed the tom that was holding down her legs. “Can I have her?”

“You would, Trashmouth,” hissed the foul smelling she-cat, “and you’ve already got Spiderbite, you don’t want this kittypet.”

“Just hold ‘em nice and still,” Munchmouth meowed, hovering over the two cats and raising his massive paw to deal a finishing blow.

Just then, a shuffling sound in a nearby bush made all the cats’ ears perk, and a small shape leaped out and bounded toward them. It looked to be a triangular piece of human food, but it was on the move, and it dashed right between them!

“Pizzaaaa!” yowled the fat tom, leaning forward to try and grab it. The weight of his own body made him lose his balance and fall into the other Roveclan cats. Shadowlight thought he heard bones snapping as the cat that was pinning his hind legs was buried under the deputy. In the moment of confusion, he managed to wriggle free and batted the other cat across the face before springing away. 

Bonewhisper headbutted Acidbreath and struggled free from under Trashmouth, both RoveClan cats having been distracted by the toppling of their deputy. She ran to stand beside Shadowlight panting heavily. “I will never take fresh air for granted again.” 

Munchmouth scrambled to his feet and bounded after the runaway slice of pizza like a hungry dog. Both cats stood bewildered for a moment at how such an obese cat could ever move that fast, before they remembered they were still surrounded. The cat that had been crushed under his deputy’s weight was mewling and dragging himself to safety, but the other three cats were closing in fast.

“Get them, Rottingtooth!” Acidbreath spat, shaking her head and getting her bearings. 

Shadowlight and Bonewhisper took a step back but unsheathed their claws, more prepared to fight this time. Rottingtooth hissed, about to pounce, when a loud crash made all three hunters stop and turn. The deputy had come back around, still chasing the slice of pizza, and was barreling through the alleyway knocking over everything in sight. He didn’t bother slowing down as he bowled over all three of his cats. 

The two warriors took advantage of the moment of chaos to run away before the RoveClan hunters got to their feet again. Bonewhisper stopped for a second to pick up the bundle of herbs she had left on the ground, and then she and Shadowlight quickly climbed a fence post to hide and watch from the other side. The slice of pizza stopped moving, and a small dark figure scurried out from beneath it and ran between a crack in the fence as Munchmouth stopped to devour the left behind food. On the other side of the fence, a young gray tom emerged, making the other two cats jump. The small cat paused, and looked back to meet their eyes. 

“Come,” he meowed quickly, his tail raised as he bounded away through the grass. Shadowlight and Bonewhisper looked at each other and nodded as they leapt down from the fence to follow. The little cat was fast, and they nearly lost sight of him in the darkness when he jumped into a pile of leaves and vanished.  
Bonewhisper stopped to sniff the leaves and looked back at Shadowlight, who just shrugged. A moment later, the gray tom poked his head out from the pile suddenly.

“Come!” he repeated impatiently, disappearing into the leaves once more. Shadowlight padded forward to join Bonewhisper, and the two cats leapt into the pile.


	8. Chapter Six

Shadowlight and Bonewhisper stumbled as they fell into the leaves, sinking much deeper than they’d expected. A hole had been dug underneath, and the pile went down for several tail-lengths before depositing them at the bottom in a dark tunnel. Inside, the small tom they had followed in waited in front of them for a moment, making sure they had both gotten through before dashing off into the darkness. 

“Hold on!” Shadowlight called out. His eyes widened as far as they could, but still he could not see a thing. It was pitch-black down here, and yet the small cat had dashed several paces ahead. Bonewhisper bumped her nose straight into a dirt wall and shook her head, stumbling into Shadowlight who then tripped over a tree root. The young cat ahead of them groaned before turning around and padding back to them. He brushed their noses with his tail to show them where he was and kept a slower pace this time, allowing them to follow closely behind.

After a short distance and a few sharp turns, their guide ran forward a few pawsteps, and there was a sharp click as the space lit up. The two warriors squinted at the sudden light. It was the harsh artificial light that the humans used to light their homes. As their eyes adjusted, they saw that they were in a small underground pocket, circular in shape and about four cat-lengths wide. The small tom was standing on a switch that was connected to a small human lamp on one end by a string, and connected to a small metal box in the dirt wall on the other end. Also connected to the switch was a small cloth blanket that radiated warmth, a tiny miniaturized version of the box humans watched that lit up with pictures, and a few other human objects that neither cat knew the function of.

“Wow! What is this place?” meowed Bonewhisper, padding around and looking all around, clearly impressed. Instead of responding, the small gray cat nudged them both toward a small pile of food. It was a combination of human snacks, housecat snacks, and a few small birds and mice. The small cat nodded for the two of them to have their pick. 

“Really? Thank you! We are pretty hungry.” Shadowlight meowed graciously, picking out a piece of chicken from the human food, leaving the hard-earned prey for their host to keep. Bonewhisper selected a housecat treat and sat down in the middle of the clearing to eat, and Shadowlight crouched next to her.

“So, what’s your name?” he asked between bites. The young cat tilted his head to one side as he watched them eat.

“Name?” he meowed with a puzzled expression.

“Yes, I’m Shadowlight and this is Bonewhisper,” he replied, nodding to his friend. “What’s your name?”  
The cat looked down and anxiously shuffled his paws but did not reply. Instead he trotted over to the food pile and grabbed a sparrow to munch on. 

Shadowlight and Bonewhisper exchanged a concerned glance as they finally got a good look at the young tom. He was gray with dark gray stripes and sharp features. From the way he looked, he could not have been more than four moons old, and from the lack of other scents in the area, he seemed to be all alone. He did have a very impressive shelter and plenty of food, but he seemed to be unwilling or unable to communicate. 

“Do you have any friends?” inquired Bonewhisper. The cat glanced up from his sparrow with wide yellow eyes momentarily before going back to his meal. “We can be your friends if you want,” she tried, but gained no response.

“Are you all by yourself down here?” Shadowlight asked, a hint of sympathy in his voice. The young cat looked up for a moment longer and nodded his head before going back to eating.

“Would you like to come with us? Bonewhisper meowed gently. The little cat flattened his ears and made a faint frightened squeak, but said nothing as he went on eating. 

“What do we do?” the speckled she-cat whispered anxiously to her friend.

“I don’t think there’s much we can do,” he replied, finishing the last bite of his food. “It doesn’t sound like he wants to come with us.”

“I know,” she meowed sadly, “I just wish we could get to know him better…”

“Yeah, he’s definitely an interesting cat,” Shadowlight agreed, looking around at all of the objects the young tom had gathered to build his shelter, “but he seems to be doing okay, he did save us after all.”

“You’re right,” Bonewhisper sighed, finishing the rest of her meal as well before leaning over to clean the scratch on her side from the earlier scuffle, “I suppose StarClan is taking care of him in their own way.”

“StarClan!” the young cat meowed enthusiastically, springing to his paws with a sudden burst of energy. “StarClan! At the death-place?” he went on, trotting toward Bonewhisper.

“H-Huh?” she meowed, startled.

“StarClan,” he repeated once more, settling onto the ground in front of the she-cat and nuzzling her chin with a soft purr.

“Um, uhh.. Yes..? Did I say something good?” she questioned awkwardly, glancing at Shadowlight for help.

The black warrior shrugged, and smiled at the awkward scene that was beginning to unfold. “Yes, we know about StarClan,” he meowed softly, turning to sit closer to the little cat, “but what is the death-place?”

A troubled expression entered the cat’s yellow eyes as he flattened himself down and shuffled his paws again. He seemed to think very hard for several moments before he finally spoke. “Long time ago… I was there, human was there. He was feeding rats. Blue powder from a box; they ate, so I ate. Then, I was sick. I was sleeping for a long time. Then, I was awake, in the death-place. A she cat was there, she felt of death. But she was nice. Big stones were there, they felt of death too. And the land too. Everything felt of death, but the she-cat was nice. And said I am alive because of StarClan. Then, she gave me food and plants...” He trailed off, but seemed to be finished with his story, as a few moments later he was purring happily again.

“I think he means the graveyard,” Bonewhisper meowed pensively. It was difficult to follow the young cat’s broken speech patterns, as he spoke like a kit who was still learning to form proper sentences, but the place he was describing, with large stones and death everywhere, sounded like it had to be the graveyard. “It sounds like a medicine cat helped him!” Her eyes grew wide with excitement at the thought of a real live medicine cat living around here. She wanted to meet her more than anything.

“Maybe we should take him to see Skullbones,” Shadowlight suggested, “he might know about the medicine cat, and maybe he can let you talk to StarClan,” he directed toward the small tom, whose face immediately perked up.

“Where?” he asked excitedly, springing to his feet and bouncing up and down.

“Well, it’s, a bit of a trek from here,” he replied, getting to his feet as well and looking down the tunnel entrance that had brought them there. He realized that there were several forks in the tunnel and he had no idea which way led where. Meanwhile, the little tom had padded over to the small picture box and pressed a button with his nose, causing the box to light up.

“Which one?” he asked, gesturing toward the screen with his tail as he continued to press a different button. The box flashed with images of different places around town; human homes and food places, the graveyard, different roads, even the alleyway they were in earlier. Shadowlight’s ears pricked nervously as he saw images of RoveClan cats padding back and forth in several of the images. This must have been how the young cat knew that they were in trouble in the first place! 

“Wow, how do you have all this?” Bonewhisper meowed in amazement, settling beside them to watch the screen. Finally, he pressed the button again and an image of the junkyard flashed onto the screen. “Oh! That’s the place!” she yelped, swishing her tail.

The small cat looked delighted and he got up trotted over to a pile of objects on one side of the den. He picked out a small collar with a sleek black object hanging from one end and wrestled it onto his neck. As the two cats watched in confusion, he padded over to the switch that lay on the ground and stepped on it. With a sharp click, the area went dark again.

“Follow!” he called out as the two warriors’ eyes tried to adjust. He brushed his tail in front of them and remembered to move a bit more slowly this time. The two cats followed obediently, trusting that the small cat knew his way through the tunnels.

A few minutes later, light shone ahead from a dusty slope at the end of the tunnel. The surface was littered with bits of glass and scrap metal, and a familiar stench of fumes wafted in from the hole. They watched as the tom scrambled up ahead of them, and followed close behind. 

At the top of the hole, they emerged into the belly of a large car. The tunnel had been a shortcut to the junkyard! The car had glass barriers covering all of the holes on its sides, with no clear way out. The gray tom craned his neck to reach the black object that hung from his collar, and grabbed it in his jaws. He bit down, and a high pitched chirp came from somewhere in the car, making Shadowlight and Bonewhisper jump. At the same time, with the sound of creaking metal, the back wall of the car began to slowly lift away. The three cats leaped out of the opening, and the small cat squeezed the box in his jaws again, causing the wall to slowly fall into place once more. The two warriors stared in amazement at the young cat’s command of human technology before remembering that they had come to look for Skullbones.

“I’m not sure how we’re going to find him, I can’t scent anything but fumes in this place.” whispered Shadowlight. It was already moonhigh, and puddles of strong smelling liquid pooled on the ground everywhere, making his nose burn even at a distance. The little gray tom padded over to one of the puddles, leaning down as if he were about to take a drink.

“Hey! I don’t think you should drink that!” Bonewhisper yelped, sprinting over and nudging the small cat’s head aside. He took a closer look at the liquid and saw unnatural swirls of color, then looked at Bonewhisper, whose face was scrunched with the discomfort of being so close to the burning fumes. Strangely, the young cat didn’t seem to be bothered by the smell, but he seemed to understand as he nodded obediently and fell back in line with the two warriors. 

“I don’t think he has a sense of smell,” the she-cat whispered to her friend. Shadowlight glanced at her with a look of concern, when the young tom spoke.

“He’s over there,” he meowed confidently, pointing with his nose to a large pile of cars. It was the same pile in which Skullbones had concealed the Moonstone, where the two cats had been only hours ago. 

Luckily, the two cats had remembered the safe path that Skullbones had shown them, and after another treacherous climb, they were in the old cat’s hidden den.

“Back so soon?” the old cat inquired as they entered. He seemed unsurprised as if he had been expecting them. His eyes brightened however when he saw the third cat who was with them. “Ah, you’ve brought another!” 

“Yes, he’s very young, but he saved us from a bunch of RoveClan cats. He’s all alone though,” Shadowlight explained.

“We think he was saved by a medicine cat when he was a kit!” Bonewhisper interjected. “She told him that StarClan had saved him, and he’s wanted to speak to them himself ever since.” 

The old cat’s expression softened as he thought for a moment. “He must have met old Corpsespawn,” he meowed. “She’s the RoveClan medicine cat, and probably the only other cat around here who’s my age!” he added with a chuckle.

“RoveClan?” shrieked Bonewhisper in alarm. “But why would a RoveClan cat help him?”

Skullbones smiled and padded over to the young she-cat. “Medicine cats are healers. They never let clan boundaries stand in the way of helping others.” Bonewhisper nodded in understanding, her eyes sparkling with admiration. “As for this one,” the old cat continued, meeting the gray tom’s gaze, “StarClan has invited him here. It’s time he’s visited the Moonstone.”

Skullbones led the way to the secret chamber. Once they were all gathered around, he opened the box revealing the shimmering crystal. All four cats’ eyes widened at the splendid sight, but the young tom seemed especially excited as small squeals of joy slipped out of his opened mouth.

“Relax, little one,” purred Skullbones, resting a paw on the gray tom’s striped shoulder. The young cat closed his eyes and did his best to sit still. The elderly brown tom closed his eyes as well and meditated in front of the stone. Shadowlight and Bonewhisper settled nearby and watched. After a moment, Skullbones began to speak. The small cat gasped in excitement and opened his eyes as if he already knew what the old cat was going to say.

“StarClan has been waiting,” he purred warmly. “and they wish to give this young cat a name.” He strode forward and placed his paw on the younger cat’s small forehead. “From this day forth, you shall be known as Mindpaw.” The newly named cat squealed with delight and nuzzled Skullbones’ paw. “Mindpaw, StarClan has given you particular challenges, as well as particular advantages, but with the help of these two fine mentors,” he continued, gesturing at Shadowlight and Bonewhisper, “you too will become a warrior in your turn.”

Shadowlight was perplexed by the idea of the two of them being entrusted to mentor another cat so soon when neither of them had really had much experience as warriors themselves, but Skullbones seemed confident that it was the right decision. 

“Welcome, Mindpaw!” Bonewhisper meowed, padding over to nudge his side. Mindpaw purred and gave the she-cat’s shoulder a lick. Shadowlight stood to welcome the new apprentice as well.

“You will be complete soon,” Skullbones meowed to the group with an approving nod. Shadowlight meant to ask what the old cat meant, but he was distracted by Mindpaw climbing onto his back and wrestling with his ears. He shook the small cat off and lay on his side, countering the small cat’s pounces with playful swats. One thing was certain, their journey was going to be a lot more lively and interesting with Mindpaw around.


	9. Intermission - The RoveClan Queens

Spiderbite, BloodBliss, and Tanglepelt made their way quickly toward the hole in the wall they called home, back from their usual night of patrolling the streets. Despite her dragging leg Spiderbite managed to move fairly quickly, though it did cause her some amount of pain. She hissed as she entered the den, knocking over another cat’s prizes. 

“Amazing. Some cat gave you yet another useless shiny trinket. Aren’t you lucky?” she spat at the cat buried beneath the mess.

The fourth she-cat stood up from under the fallen pile and nuzzled Spiderbite’s cheek, “I sure am!” she meowed gleefully, getting a paw to the face in response and tumbling back into her nest. 

Bloodbliss followed Spiderbite inside and chuckled as she looked over the clumsy she-cat’s items. “Guttersong, when are you going to realize your sister hates you? Is it gonna take her standing over you as you slowly bleed to death?” She turned to look at Spiderbite with large eyes, “Can I have her intestines?” 

Spiderbite rolled her eyes and nudged Bloodbliss to the other side of the hole where Tanglepelt had already settled down. “Go rest, dipshit. The hunters will be back from their patrol soon. We can’t be too tired to show ‘em who's boss.” Spiderbite’s one kit, Nightkit, was curled up in Tanglepelt’s fur, a sleek black bundle that stood out against the calico’s own wispy patchwork pelt. Bloodbliss gave Nightkit a lick on the head when Spiderbite leaned over and snapped the kit up by her scruff.

“Hey!” wailed Bloodbliss, “I was just washing her!” she snarled, clearly vexed.

“Get your own,” Spiderbite hissed as she settled down in her own nest near Guttersong, taking the opportunity to kick some of the she-cat’s items farther away.

“Ha ha, you’re hilarious,” the sleek orange queen hissed back. “You know we’re all sterile, except for you.”

Spiderbite growled under her breath and bared her teeth. She hadn’t wanted to raise kits at all. She wanted to be RoveClan’s fiercest hunter, but her plans were cut short when she lost the use of her hind leg after a bite from a brown recluse. Ironically, she had been one of the few RoveClan queens that did not turn out to be sterile from malnutrition or contaminated water. “I didn’t tell you to have your own,” the bitter queen snarled, “if you want one so bad, just go get one.”

Bloodbliss’s eyes lit up as she remembered the stray expecting she-cat that they had encountered half a moon ago. Surely she’d had her kits by now. “Brilliant idea, Spiderbite,” she said in a low meow, licking her muzzle deviously. “I think I know just where to find some…”

On the other side of town, Rubyshine lay under the protective cover of a thorn bush with two small bundles of red-orange fur. It had been two weeks since she had last encountered the RoveClan queens who had betrayed her and attempted to claim her kits, who at the time had not yet been born. The two mewling newborns climbed on their mother and huddled closer. They were both healthy, but still very young, just beginning to open their eyes. Leaf bare was beginning, and the temperature dropped just below freezing at night. As Rubyshine licked their heads and nuzzled them to keep them warm, she prayed that she would be able to find better shelter soon, and that this leaf bare would be a quick and merciful one.


End file.
